Yes, get any humidity/water issues under control (run dehumidifiers if needed, especially in the basement), then work systematically room to room. Scrub the walls and ceiling with TSP, I spray 20% bleach on anything that looks suspiciously like mold or mildew, prime if needed and paint, clean or refinish flooring, and pretty soon the place will look and smell like new. Immediately pitch any carpeting or other fabric that's in the house, it's impossible to clean and deodorize completely. A shellac-based primer like BIN is great for sealing walls that may have had mildew while the house was vacant-- lowering indoor humidity is key to preventing it from returning. Lots of us have done this with great success!

Take a deep breath and congrats on your new home! It feels like a lot, but you got this. If you don't own a shop vac, get one. It can be better/nicer to use to vacuum out a lot of cobwebs, bugs and bigger debris. You can use your home vac, but a shop vac can be easier to empty and then you don't grunge up your home vac tackling the big cleaning.

Been where you have been my friend.

I was going through chemo for my third round of cancer, could barely pick my head up off a pillow, and got an offer to buy my bigger house.

Happy for the extra cash we scrambled to get a home i had that had been vacant for 11 years to be liveable for a family if six. We were going from 3400 sq ft to 1100. Then the ones that offered to buy the house that was not even for sale. backed out.

I still have that tiny house, and now and then walk through it. Like in the movies where those that have made it go back to their destitute pasts, i remember how hard things were at that time.

Its a good reminder that we do not stay down. Things do get better with sticktoitness and hard work. I will pray that through it all you see the potential beauty of your new home. I have all the confidence in the world that you can make your new place shine.

You got this!!

Make SURE the roof is good first.

I know it is too late for this home, but a great way to quickly evaluate a distressed home is to look at the roofline. If it is straight, its might be worth buying. If its roofline sags it has a lot of structural damage and should be passed upon.

Obviously mileage varies, but is a really quick way to evaluate a house for potential purchase.

First investigate if there are any leaks, foundation issues, basement penetration issues that are causing the dank smell and remdiate them. You can clean all you want but if you don't get to the root of the problem it won't matter. Mold is a really serious health issue. Make sure you bleach out any areas you even suspect of mold.

Shop vac the heck out of the place. Open windows for as long as possible, put fans in windows to suck the air out, run a dehumidifier, run a high grade hepa air filter. Clean, clean, clean. It will come together and much of it depends on how sensitive your family members are to odors.

Not a huge fan of continuous purchasing, but my old house has an addiction to Fabreeze refill plug ins.

As we clean, renovate and improve the home, we hope to slowly back off our reliance upon them but the scent of something can affect mood.

i guess in my own way i am like an old house: I am old (49) and wear colonge! 😀😀😀😀😀

Having bought,sold and owned rentals for several years I found that high quility air filters go a long way. I fabricated a portable filter box using a blower from a gas furnace and provisions for filtration through two back to back 20x25 filters. On day one of work the filter ran 24 hours a day until last day before showing. Different type filters were used at various stages according to need but never less than Merv 12 in 2nd filter and where odors were a concern I had charcoal in 2nd stage. If you have access to something similar try this and you will be convinced how good air filteration results in pleasant,fresh air far superior to candels,air fresherners or other things. When you go away from your home 3 or more days,install a Merv 12 or higher filter and run filter while gone. You will start using better filters in your hvac going forward. With an extremly dusty home as you describe I would start with an inexpensive filter in first stage and Merv 8 in final stage 24/7 until construction/remodeling is over and house is clean enough to live in. From there I'd have Merv 8 in first stage and 12 or higher in final,unless there are lingering oder in which case Merv 12 in first and charcoal in final running 24/7. Be sure to use high quility bags/filters in vacuum cleaners throughout clean up. From day one pour water in shower drain,laundry drains,all sinks and basins and any others not being used. Something with a handle along the line of sponge mop lets you move fast wiping down walls,cabinets,large book cases and the like.

Thank you all SO much for your help and your comments. And especially for your prayers! I really needed those! I'm sorry I didn't reply; I just came across the term "drive by" for people who never acknowledge all the help they've gotten and I didn't want to do that.

The roof and structure for us are good. The main culprit is the basement. We are having grading done, and need to do a sump pump, gutters, and run a dehumidifier. The house itself just really needs a good cleaning, all surfaces. Thank you all for your suggestions and encouragement!!

When you buy the dehumidifier, you want to look at how it drains. Being able to drain to a sink is really helpful. Otherwise, you'll have to trot down there to empty the water all the time.

The other thing about keeping a basement dry is to ensure that water drains well away from your house. That all your gutters are in good shape and the downspouts send the water well away from your foundation. If your house is on a slope, consider French drains.

Keeping the water from ever getting into the basement is the first step.

We had no sink or floor drain in our basement. He put the dehumidifier on a Home Depot shelf near our furnace and ran a hose from the back of the dehumidifier into the clean out for the HVAC condensate pipe. It worked really well. My dad is an HVAC engineer and comes up with great fixes. Thanks Dad!

Run the dehumidier all the time set to your preferred humidity level. Just be ready for hefty electric bills. It is the same cost as running an AC window unit.

Also, my Dad recommened ripping out trees with vigorous root growth planted too close to the house so they would not penetrate the foundation causing more cracks for moisture to seep in. Goodbye beautifl fig tree!

I do this and live in them qt the same time. The key is to get one room completely done. My last Victorian had squatters, fires, was burglarized, you name it. . It sat empty tor 30 years!